Edgewater Marketplace was sold by Edgewater Marketplace LLC, an entity reportedly created by Pacific Star Corp. of Los Angeles. Bunker Hill was acquired in a joint venture with the current owner/developer, Fidelis Realty Partners; Weingarten purchased 58% of the project.

“We want to expand in markets where we have boots on the ground,” Hendrix says, pointing out that the REIT has an office in Denver, in addition to Houston. “We think we have intimate knowledge of the assets in those markets because our people are able to give us a really good understanding of the projects and their potential.”

Edgewater Marketplace is a 145,000-square-foot center anchored by King Sooper (Kroger), as well as Target, which owns its facility. The property, which is 98% leased, is located in an infill site with a population of 159,000 within a three-mile radius.

Similarly, the 491,000-square-foot Village Plaza at Bunker Hill is located along the heavily trafficked Interstate 10 and boasts a three-mile population of more than 150,000 with an average household income of $110,000 per year. The center is anchored by HEB supermarket, Academy Sports and Outdoors, Babies R Us and PetSmart.

“The density with both these center is very high,” Hendrix says. “Today, retailers are focused on density – they cannot go out to the suburbs and try to grow business. That makes these centers even more valuable.”

Both properties were marketed, and Hendrix says the REIT faced competition from its “peers.” Weingarten assumed a loan as part of the Edgewater Marketplace acquisition. “The seller knew the lender would accept us, so that was some benefit to us,” he notes. Similarly, the REIT won the Bunker Hill deal because it didn’t have any loan contingency, he adds.

Hendrix says Weingarten’s local expertise made it easier to determine property value. “The offers we made were based on market rents today and what we felt they would be in the future,” he explains. “We believe they were fairly priced, and we’re comfortable with the numbers we paid.”